James Murphy was described as a "witty and funny" family man
James Murphy was diagnosed with a condition when he was 18 and spent a lot of the following years in hospital
James Murphy was diagnosed with a condition when he was 18 and spent a lot of the following years in hospital
(Image: Supplied)
An "amazing" dad-of-six who died was described as a "witty and funny" family man. James Murphy, from Stockbridge Village, died on August 23 at the age of 36.
He leaves behind his wife Jessica, 35, and their children Gabriella, 18, Riley, 14, Nevaeh, 13, Esmae, nine, Elsy-Rose, seven, and baby James, one. James had been diagnosed with cardiomyopathy - a condition that affects the heart's ability to pump blood around the body - when he was 18.
In James's case the condition was genetic, and in later years he suffered from heart failure and other illnesses. Paying tribute to her husband, Jessica told the ECHO: ”He was lovely, he'd do anything for anyone, very family oriented.
"He never let anyone see that he was struggling. He got on with everything and helped everybody the best you can. He was just an all-round amazing person.
“We met in 2016. He asked me if he could take me out. I ignored him for the first day, then eventually we went to the pictures and that was it. We never left each other’s side from that day.”
James was described as someone who "absolutely adored" his kids
James was described as someone who "absolutely adored" his kids
(Image: Supplied)
His sister Hayley Murphy, 38, added: “He was funny. I miss him - I miss his jokes and his character, he was very witty.
“He absolutely adored his kids. He was really family oriented. He didn't really go out with friends, he'd rather spend time with his family.”
When James was 18, he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. He went on to receive a heart transplant at 21 and recovered. But shortly after the birth of his daughter, Elsy-Rose, James fell unwell again and was subsequently told that his heart was failing. He spent much of the rest of his life in hospital.
Hayley said: “The doctors used to say, James is so unpredictable, he will be the one to guide us through because we’ve said one thing and he’s done another.”
James was visited by Everton captain Seamus Coleman when he was unwell
James was visited by Everton captain Seamus Coleman when he was unwell
(Image: Supplied)
James continued to defy predictions until last month, when he became seriously unwell. Jessica said: “In August, I noticed at home that he was deteriorating. He wasn't getting off the couch, his appetite was gone, he was unable to walk. He was really struggling just to breathe.”
James, who was a huge Everton fan, was taken to hospital once again. On August 3, doctors told the family he had “around 12 hours left” but the dad carried on. During his stay in a hospice, they were sent a video by former Blues player Duncan Ferguson and received a visit from club captain Seamus Coleman in hospital.
It wasn't until over two weeks later on Saturday, August 23 that James died. Due to the amount of times he had defied predictions, the loss still hasn’t fully sunk in for the family. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover the cost of a funeral and support the family at this devastating time.
James was 36 when he died on August 23 2025
James was 36 when he died on August 23 2025(Image: Supplied)
Jessica said: “They told us, this was wrong, that was wrong, but every single time he got better. We thought, ‘they said in 2018 that he wouldn’t have long, it’s now 2025’. You just keep believing that it's going to be fine. It just doesn't feel real at the minute.”
“Because he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and then he had the heart transplant, he was always a risk anyway and he was never able to obtain life insurance or anything like that.”
Hayley added: “We've been trying to get as much money as we can as a family together but it's a lot of money to try and get together on the deadline.
“It's a lot of pressure on Jess because she's grieving as well and she's got six kids to look after. She should be allowed to grieve her husband, not having to chase people to help her out.
“It's been a tough 10 years. All we want to do is just give him a nice send off. It shouldn’t be like this, he was 36.”
You can find out more about the fundraiser here.